Moore re-elected Fletcher's mayor

Published: Tuesday, November 5, 2013 at 8:52 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, November 5, 2013 at 8:52 p.m.

Mayor William “Bill” Moore retained control of the gavel on Fletcher Town Council, winning 76 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s mayoral contest.

Moore, 69, defeated challenger Dennis Justice, 43, to earn his fourth term on council, where he has served as mayor for the last 14 years. He garnered 330 votes to Justice’s 102.

“I’m blessed,” Moore said following his victory. “We’ve got a wonderful town out here and I’m just proud to be part of it.”

A retired Chevy salesman, Moore has been a strong advocate for developing the Heart of Fletcher and Fletcher Community Park and recruiting new industries to the town. He campaigned on a theme of continued progress while living within the town’s means.

“We’ve just got to keep moving forward, but we’ve got to move forward at a pace we can afford,” Moore said. “We’ve got to live within our budget. Our challenge moving forward is developing the (Highway) 25 corridor and bringing more businesses into the community.”

Justice said he decided to run against Moore after a medical cannabis dispensary in Fletcher was “unjustly” raided by a SWAT team, despite its operator paying stamp taxes that he said benefited local law enforcement. He charged that Moore failed to seek “alternative resolutions.”

“(It) forced me to run because nobody in the establishment questioned that raid,” Justice said Tuesday after his loss. “If 4,000-plus (registered) voters could not act on that, I can’t be their mayor anyway.”

As the last precincts reported Tuesday, Moore admitted he “was no authority on marijuana. But I do know that it’s illegal to grow it in North Carolina. As long as I’m mayor of Fletcher, we’re going to enforce the law.”

Another issue Justice campaigned on was his goal of developing 93 acres formerly owned by ArvinMeritor into a new park, with a concrete dome structure that would double as an indoor multi-sport facility and disaster shelter.

“It’s all about priorities,” Moore said, who pointed out the town invests roughly $425,000 each year in recreation. “That (Meritor) property isn’t going to go anywhere. And we’re going to develop that, but we’re going to do it at a pace this town can afford.”

District 1 Councilwoman Sheila Franklin and Mayor Pro-Tem Eddie Henderson of District 4 also won re-election Tuesday. Both ran uncontested for their seats.

“This is not about Bill Moore,” the newly elected mayor said. “This is about Fletcher. The only thing that I will take credit for is I have put a lot of good people around me.”

<p>Mayor William “Bill” Moore retained control of the gavel on Fletcher Town Council, winning 76 percent of the vote in Tuesday's mayoral contest.</p><p>Moore, 69, defeated challenger Dennis Justice, 43, to earn his fourth term on council, where he has served as mayor for the last 14 years. He garnered 330 votes to Justice's 102.</p><p>“I'm blessed,” Moore said following his victory. “We've got a wonderful town out here and I'm just proud to be part of it.”</p><p>A retired Chevy salesman, Moore has been a strong advocate for developing the Heart of Fletcher and Fletcher Community Park and recruiting new industries to the town. He campaigned on a theme of continued progress while living within the town's means.</p><p>“We've just got to keep moving forward, but we've got to move forward at a pace we can afford,” Moore said. “We've got to live within our budget. Our challenge moving forward is developing the (Highway) 25 corridor and bringing more businesses into the community.”</p><p>Justice said he decided to run against Moore after a medical cannabis dispensary in Fletcher was “unjustly” raided by a SWAT team, despite its operator paying stamp taxes that he said benefited local law enforcement. He charged that Moore failed to seek “alternative resolutions.”</p><p>“(It) forced me to run because nobody in the establishment questioned that raid,” Justice said Tuesday after his loss. “If 4,000-plus (registered) voters could not act on that, I can't be their mayor anyway.”</p><p>As the last precincts reported Tuesday, Moore admitted he “was no authority on marijuana. But I do know that it's illegal to grow it in North Carolina. As long as I'm mayor of Fletcher, we're going to enforce the law.”</p><p>Another issue Justice campaigned on was his goal of developing 93 acres formerly owned by ArvinMeritor into a new park, with a concrete dome structure that would double as an indoor multi-sport facility and disaster shelter.</p><p>“It's all about priorities,” Moore said, who pointed out the town invests roughly $425,000 each year in recreation. “That (Meritor) property isn't going to go anywhere. And we're going to develop that, but we're going to do it at a pace this town can afford.”</p><p>District 1 Councilwoman Sheila Franklin and Mayor Pro-Tem Eddie Henderson of District 4 also won re-election Tuesday. Both ran uncontested for their seats.</p><p>“This is not about Bill Moore,” the newly elected mayor said. “This is about Fletcher. The only thing that I will take credit for is I have put a lot of good people around me.”</p>